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Court of Appeal: Former President Trump does not enjoy immunity from criminal prosecution

2024-02-06 18:30:48, Kosova & Bota CNA

Court of Appeal: Former President Trump does not enjoy immunity from criminal

Former President Donald Trump

A federal appeals court has ruled that Mr. Donald Trump does not enjoy immunity from investigation on charges of trying to overturn the outcome of the 2020 election, bringing the former president one step closer to an unprecedented criminal trial.

The three-judge panel of the Court of Appeals for the Washington Capital District rejected former President Trump's claims that he cannot be investigated for actions related to his official responsibilities.

The ruling, which Mr. Trump is likely to appeal, rejects his efforts to avoid trial on charges that he has undermined American democracy and the transfer of power. The decision comes as he is strengthening his position as the front-runner to win the Republican Party's nomination in November's presidential race.

His lawyers said that former presidents enjoy broad legal protection and that they cannot be criminally investigated for official actions, in case they were not previously found guilty by the House of Representatives and removed from office by a decision of the Senate.

At the January 9 hearing, where Mr. Trump himself was present, the justices reacted with skepticism to this argument. One of the judges asked Mr. Trump's lawyer, "what would happen if a president ordered the killing of a political rival? Could he escape a criminal investigation without Congress acting first?

Former President Donald Trump has consistently repeated his arguments that he enjoys immunity. In a post on social media on January 18, he wrote that "All presidents must have full presidential immunity, or else the authority and decision-making of the President of the United States will end forever."

The charges against the former president were brought by Special Prosecutor Jack Smith.

It accuses Mr. Trump of falsely claiming vote-rigging in order to pressure lawmakers, the Justice Department and Vice President Mike Pence to block the certification of the election results.

This is one of 4 criminal cases facing former President Donald Trump.

He has declared that he is innocent and has accused the investigators of acting politically motivated in order to damage his presidential campaign.

The claim that he enjoyed immunity from criminal investigation was dismissed in December by Judge Tanya Chutkan, prompting Mr Trump to appeal the ruling.

Even if Mr. Trump's claims are not accepted by the courts, appealing the rulings is likely to help him in his bid to postpone the trial, scheduled for March 4.

The appeal may create the possibility that the trial will take place after the November elections./ VOA